Flowers
by PastelLace
Summary: He had promised that throughout the years, he would give her a flower each year to prove his love for her. Semi-fluff/one shot-ish! RaiKim!


**Author's Note: **Guys. This is an AU FIC. It's kind of OOC-ish as well. Keep in mind that this is very sweet. Do not shoot me if you can't handle fluff... It's also a RaiKim story.

**Summary: **_He had promised that throughout the years, he would give her a flower each year to prove his love for her. Semi-fluff/one shot-ish! RaiKim!_

**Pairings: **Raimundo Pedrosa x Kimiko Tohomiko

**Rating K+.** There is no foul language in the story.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Xiaolin Showdown. If I did, we'd be on season 100+ and Rai and Kim would be together.**  
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><p><strong>Flowers<strong>

Rose Garden.**  
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A twelve-year-old girl sighed; clearly annoyed by the fact that no one was talking. Her mother was sitting on one side of the table with her eyes narrowed. Her lawyer was sitting down to her left. On the other side of the long table was her father, who was also accompanied by his lawyers.

"Can I go out for some fresh air?" she asked. Realizing that no one could hear her since she sat in the middle of the long table, she repeated her words once again. "_Can I go out from some fresh air?" _she shouted, loud enough for her words to echo in the great dining room.

Her mother leaned towards her lawyer who whispered something into her ear. "I suppose."

Her father narrowed his eyes and said, "Why, Kimiko? It was you who wanted a family dinner."

She couldn't help but roll her eyes at what her father had said. Her parents had been separated for years, and she was caught in the middle of their dispute and bitter fights as they try to settle out who would get what out of the settlement of their divorce. "I just really need some air," she said quietly. It surprised her that her parents could hear her. "The _tension_ in the air is _suffocating_."

"Very well," her father said. He moved his hands, motioning one of the maids to accompany her outside.

Shaking her head, she dismissed the maid. She wanted to be alone. Walking out to the back of her house, she looked out towards the rose garden. She couldn't help but want to burn the garden down to ashes. Her mother, before she became a bitter and distant, had told her a story about the history of the rose garden. Her father had planted the first rose plant to prove his undying love for her mother. As the years passed, the garden grew vivaciously.

Thinking of the story made her realize how stupid romance was. Romance could never last because there was also misery in the world.

Glancing at the corner of her eyes, she could see a figure barely hidden in the darkness of the night. Now she suddenly realized how foolish it was of her to walk out alone. Putting her hands up in a defensive position, she whispered, "Come on out, whoever you are. Unless you're scared of fighting a _girl_."

Swiftly, a face appears from the darkness.

Her hands immediately dropped to her hips. "What are you doing on my property?"

His forest green eyes sparkled with mischief as one of his thick brows raised. "This is your property, now, eh?"

She sighed with relief. "Oh. It's just you, Rai."

"Yup," he said, nodding at her. He stuffed his hands into his jean's pocket before saying, "Mom sent me out to get some leaves and petals from the garden. She wants to make some homemade face cream." His nose scrunched as he shuddered at the thought of her homemade face cream.

"I miss your mom," Kimiko said, smiling. "My new tutor is boring and mean." She pouted. "How long is she—"

"Seven months," Raimundo said, blushing. "Mom said it's going to be a girl. I feel bad for her."

"Why?" Kimiko asked, looking at him with a puzzled look on her face.

"Because she's going to have eight older brothers," Raimundo said, shrugging.

Kimiko looked at him. "Is it going to be hard for you, Rai? Being the youngest boy in your family? Having to be the one who has to watch over her when she's born."

He shook his head. "Not at all. I'm going to be the best older brother that she'll ever have."

"You're lucky, Rai," Kimiko said, smiling at him. "You have a big family where everyone loves each other."

"I think you've got it all wrong," Raimundo said, looking at his clothes. "Your family is rich, whereas mine… is not so rich."

"It's nothing to be ashamed about," Kimiko said. She had known the Pedrosas since the day she was born. The Pedrosas had worked on her father's property for years and lived next door, so she was acquainted to the members of the family. Especially Raimundo. The two of them had been close friends for years, but for the past few months, they both haven't talked to each other much. He had schooling and his mother's pregnancy to worry about, while she had her family's divorce to worry about.

"You look sad," Raimundo said, changing the subject. He smiled as he said, "I'm all ears, Ms. Tohomiko."

She smiled at him as she sat down in the middle of the rose garden. He followed suit. "Mom and dad have brought their lawyers to dinner." She looked at his face and added, "It was suppose to be a family dinner."

He snorted. "Ay, that sucks. Mom and dad were yelling at Robert to quit hoarding the mash potatoes. Diego and Juan were fighting over the last chicken leg."

She smiled a sad smile at him. "That's the kind of family I want to be in. Not in a cold, distant family… a warm, happy one."

His forest green eyes remained on her for a while, as he thought of something to say that would cheer her up without offending her. Realizing nothing he could say would cheer her up; he got up and said, "Stay right there. I'll be back."

She looked at his back with a puzzled look on his face. In a few minutes, he came back holding a rose in his hand, the other hand tucked behind his back.

Her eyes sparkled as she takes it from him. She winced when she realized the flower's thorn was still on the rose. She looked at him. "The thorns—did they cut you?"

Smirking, he revealed the hand he hid behind his back.

She gasped and stood up, clenching the rose tightly in her hand. "Why did you—why?"

"Because I love you—as a sister, of course. Love makes people do stupid things. That's what my dad always says," he said, shrugging.

A genuine smile appears on her face as she gave him a hug. "Thank you, Raimundo." When she pulled away from him, she saw a frown on his face. "Why are you frowning, Rai?"

His eyes were directly on her hands. "You knew that the rose still had its thorns, yet you still hold onto it. Why?"

"I guess I was just too worried about your hands." A blush appears on her face.

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why were you worried about me?"

She sighed, exasperated. "Because, like you said, 'love makes people do stupid things'."

"Really?" he said, smirking at her. "I promise that if I still love you next year, and the year after that, I'll give you a flower."

"Why not a rose?" A pout appears on her face. "Roses are my favorite flower."

"Because if I keep on giving you roses every year like this, we'll end up with too many cuts on our hands."

And the two of them laughed. Both of them were too innocent to understand the true meaning of love.

-x-

A Flower From The Heart.

A fourteen year old Kimiko sighed, debating what she should do. She sat, tapping her glittery pen repeatedly against her desk as she pretended to listen to her history teacher.

Turning around so that his face was inches away from hers, his forest green eyes bore into hers. "What?" he asked; his voice icy and cold.

"Keiko's upset," Kimiko said, dryly. "Why did you have to tell her?"

"Why didn't you?" he shot back. A smirk appears on his face. "That's what I thought." He whirled around again to face the front of the classroom.

Rolling her eyes, she said, "You know Keiko's hurt." Frowning, she kicked him again.

"Ay!" he hissed, turning around again. "What?"

"Why?" Her sapphire eyes sparkled with sadness.

"Why what?"

"Things were going so great for you and Keiko," Kimiko said softly.

"No, things weren't."

"Yes they were!"

"How would you know?" He asked harshly.

She cringed. "Because Keiko told me."

"That's just her opinion. Mine's different than hers, of course." Raimundo looked at her directly in the eyes. "Aren't you my friend too? Aren't you supposed to be on my side just as much as you are on hers?"

She narrowed her eyes and carefully said, "Raimundo Pedrosa, I am on the side of justice."

"Justice." He snorted. "Right."

"I am!"

"Kimiko."

"What?"

"I told her because I thought she knew all along. Girls tend to talk about things guys do for them all the time." He grinned at her for once. "Girls like," he poked her on the nose with his index finger, "you."

Scowling, she said, "You can forget about giving me a flower this year."

He smirked. "And why should I? Of course you should know that I love spiting you."

"Well, too bad," she said, scowling still. "Forget about giving me a flower. Stop this silly tradition. Keiko's a great girl for you. Your heart surely is telling you this."

"My heart is telling me something, alright," he said.

"What's that?" she leaned in closer, believing that he was going to whisper to her a secret.

"To give you this." A purple sweet violet appears, inches away from her nose.

She hesitated. She always loved the flower he had given since two years ago. The red rose from her father's rose garden was pressed in her journal along with the lily he had given to her just a year ago. Taking the purple flower, she said, "Why?"

"Because I will always care about you. So that means I love you, of course, you idiot. Why else would I give you a flower?"

Blushing, she said, "To spite me? But thanks for the flower, Rai."

"Anytime, princess." A smirk appears on his face.

A scowl appears on hers. "Idiot." But inside, she was smiling. Another flower to her meant that he still cared about her.

-x-

Flower Shop.

Her eyes widen with horror as she realized where they were. She was clutching onto the blindfold that she had been wearing for most of the car ride. "A flower shop, Rai? Really? Are you that insensitive enough to have to force me to pick out a flower for you to give to me?" The seventeen-year-old turns to look at the other passenger in the car who sat behind the wheels of the car. "Do you not care anymore?"

He rolls his eyes. "I told you, I have a surprise."

"And I told you, I hate surprises," she replied. Pulling out a journal, she said, "I don't know how we can stand each other after all of these years. Should I draw an X for this year's page?"

Rolling his eyes, he said, "I haven't even shown you my surprise yet and you're already pissed at me. Ay." He gave her a grin before getting out of the car.

As the two of them entered the shop, she suddenly gasped at the sight.

He smirked when he heard her gasp. "Told you," he whispered softly.

Flowers have been arranged to give the room a more romantic setting, a table was at the center of the room with a candle lit, dimly lighting the room.

"Why?" Her eyes were brimming with tears as she looked at him. She looked up at him and realized he was blushing badly.

"Because I love you."

"Oh."

"Oh?"

"That means you just care about me, right?"

"No… It's just—you weren't suppose to know that this was a flower shop—but you removed your blindfolds a bit too early, remember?" He was still blushing, but she didn't seem to notice.

"Thank you, but how am I going to fit this flower shop into my journal?" despite trying to sound sarcastic, the tone of her voice was sad.

"Are you alright?" Raimundo asked, looking at her. "Normally, girls are ecstatic when guys do this shit for them."

"No, no. I am happy. No guy has ever done this for me before. It's just…"

"Just what?" His eyes were on her. "I'm all ears, Miss Tohomiko," he said in a sincere tone.

"You only did this because you care about me," she said, dryly.

He chuckled. "Girl, I wouldn't have done this is I just cared about you. I would have just gotten you a flower with a ribbon tied around it."

"So what's with the-?"

"Kimiko. I love you. I'm in love with you. And I have been for all of these years. I was just too stupid enough to not realize that I love you more than just friends."

She was speechless for once. Stunned, shocked, and _speechless_.

"What do you say, Miss Tohomiko?" A carnation appears in front of her, his hand still clutching the stem of the flower. A puppy dog look appears on his face.

-x-

A Flower Made of Diamonds.

Twenty three years old, the young women grinned at him as she watched him dig through his many pockets on his jacket and pants.

"Rai," she sang softly, "I'll pay for dinner. You've been paying since our senior year. Besides, my trust fund has a lot of money still left over…"

He groaned. "I do not want my girlfriend to pay for my dinner. Especially since it was my idea to go out tonight."

Giggling softly, she said, "Alright, Raimundo. Save your dignity or whatever. We'll figure something out after desert."

"Kimiko, there's something I wanted to talk to you before desert," he said quietly.

"You don't have to give me a flower, Rai," Kimiko said, smiling at him.

"But it's a tradition," he said as he pulls out a peony. He hands it to her.

"Thank you," she said, smiling at him. "It's lovely, really."

"That's not all," he said. "I just have to ask a question." His eyes were on her as he nervously ran his hand through his hair. "Kimiko, you and I have known each other since we were toddlers."

Her eyes widen as it dawned on her. _Is he…_?

"Um, well, what I'm trying to say is… Aw shit, I can't do this. Marry me, Kimiko?" His forest green eyes looked her straight in the eyes, pleadingly.

"What?" She asked, confused. She was praying to God that she hadn't heard things. Her heart started pounding faster as she looked at him.

Sighing, he got up from his chair. He got down on one knee in front of her and pulled out a velvet box out of the sleeve of his jacket, the thing he had been searching for all along. Suddenly, the restaurant got quiet as every pair of eyes in the room focused on them.

"Kimiko Tohomiko, we have known each other since we were young children at heart. From the day we met, I knew that you would one day be the love of my life. Every year, on this day, I give you a flower to prove to you my dedication of my love to you… and well, frankly, my dear… Flowers aren't enough. Will you marry me?" He opened the ring box to reveal a diamond ring that had five diamonds surrounding the smaller diamond, making it look like a flower.

She looked at it and gasped. Tears prickled her eyes as she nodded before whispering a soft yes. He quickly took the ring out of the box and put it on her finger. She then threw her arms around him and kissed him right then, right there.

The entire restaurant: busboys, waiters and waitresses, and everyone else in the room who witnessed this burst into applause at the two lovers.

"Rai."

"What?" He pulled away from her, confused.

"Flowers are enough, but a ring is alright too."

He chuckled. "Then I promise that if I still love you next year, and the year after that, I'll give you a flower."

"I think I've heard that line before," she said, blushing at him.

"And look where we are now. And you're always going to be happy."

"Why's that?"

"Because now you're going to be part of my 'warm, happy family'," he said, smirking at her.

She looked at him. "You still remember that day?" She blushed as she thought of the night in the rose garden.

"Of course. It was the day I knew I had to make you mine."

"See? Flowers are enough."

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><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>Well. That ended rather very cute from what I had wanted it to originally end. There were two other different alternative ending:

_A Blue Flower _is one where Kimiko believes he's going to stop giving her a flower because he's pledging his love to her since they're getting married... but then he would give her a blue tulip after reading his vows and promising that he still would give her a flower year after year, to symbolize their unity and love...

Or _A Cemetery_ _Flower_: where Raimundo, an old man now, visits Kimiko's grave and puts a flower from the Rose Garden on her grave to symbolize that he still loves her even though she's gone though.

The Wedding one (Blue Flowers) is cute, whereas The Cemetery one would leave you bawling on the floor- I enjoy writing sad/depressing fics too.

Or I would have put them both to the fic too, but I decided against it for strange and odd reasons/purposes.

_Every flower he has given her is different from the last one._

_And if the last segment confuses you, read the first segment. She had told him she always wanted to be in a happy, warm family. And now he's given that to her, because she will be part of that family one day.  
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